Unable to Format Floppy Disks on Catalyst based Machines

Power Computing provided the information in this article and it was deemed accurate as of 14 November 1997. Apple Computer, Inc. is not responsible for its content. This article is being provided as is and will not be updated in the future.

I have a PowerCenter computer with an ATI video card and I am unable to format floppy disks. Is this a known issue?
The PowerCurve, PowerCenter, PowerTower, and PowerTower(e) machines are all based on the Catalyst logic board design by Apple. We have seen that an ATI video card installed in one of these machines can cause floppy disks not to format.

Not all of the ATI cards shipped with Power Computing machines will experience this behavior. Only cards with ROM numbers 113-33200-111, 113-33200-112, and 113-33200-113 have exhibited this behavior.

If you are unable to format floppies and suspect you are experiencing this issue, remove the card and try to format a floppy disk. If it works, you may want to try installing the Spinnaker II Driver, written by ATI. This extension was developed to address this issue on MacOS systems based on the Catalyst logic board design.

You can receive a copy of the driver from Power Computing technical support.

Machines Affected: PowerCurve, PowerCenter, PowerTower, and PowerTower(e)
Published Date: Feb 20, 2012